Wednesday, December 5, 2012

1980 TCMA Clinton Giants Baseball, #5, Jerry Stovall (Stoval)

In 1980, Clinton (Iowa) kicked off their new SF Giants affiliation with this set of black-and-white cards familiar in design to those who've seen other TCMA entries. A tip of the hat to their photographer for creating one unforgettable, slack-jawed image.

I tried to find any other photo of Jerry in a uniform for comparison, since this is about as awkward as awkward gets, but Google turned up nothing. If you know of something, drop a line and I'll post it here.

Not sure if Jerry's switch-hitting gave him an edge, since pitchers can swing an empty stick if they throw well enough. I do know that 3 such multi-talented hurlers made it to Cooperstown, 2 of whom appeared on #5s.

1970 Sports Cards For Collectors Old-Timers Postcards, Early Wynn

1976 Motorola, Three Fingers Brown

(Robin Roberts was the third HOFer to hit from both sides, but without a known #5.)